The Medical group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Arbutus Biopharma (ABUS) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Medical sector should help us answer this question.

Arbutus Biopharma is a member of our Medical group, which includes 1018 different companies and currently sits at #5 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.

The Zacks Rank is a proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Arbutus Biopharma is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for ABUS' full-year earnings has moved 2.6% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.

Our latest available data shows that ABUS has returned about 54.8% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, stocks in the Medical group have gained about 11.2% on average. This means that Arbutus Biopharma is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.

Another stock in the Medical sector, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR (CHGCY), has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 24.8%.

In Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 11.4% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

To break things down more, Arbutus Biopharma belongs to the Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry, a group that includes 497 individual companies and currently sits at #69 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 3.3% so far this year, meaning that ABUS is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns.

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR, however, belongs to the Medical - Drugs industry. Currently, this 178-stock industry is ranked #93. The industry has moved -0.3% so far this year.

Arbutus Biopharma and Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Medical stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.

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Arbutus Biopharma Corporation (ABUS) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Unsponsored ADR (CHGCY) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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